‘He helped build today’s Orlando’
Dubbed godfather of Democratic fundraising
Richard Swann, a key Democratic Party fundraiser and former finance chair for President Jimmy Carter who bounced back from a savings and loan collapse in 1990, died Wednesday after suffering a heart attack at his law office in Winter Park.
Swann, whom longtime political consultant Dick Batchelor called “the godfather of Democratic fundraising in Florida,” was 79.
“We are saddened by the sudden loss of our incredible father and grandfather, Richard Swann,” his family said in a statement. “He dedicated his life to his family, the practice of law and serving his beloved Central Florida community. For over 40 years, he thrived in the political arena and relished participating in our democracy.”
Swann grew up in Orlando and began his long career as a fundraiser by backing his friend Bill Gunter’s races for the Florida Legislature in 1966, the U.S. House in 1972 and the U.S. Senate in 1974.
But it was through an apartment over their garage in Winter Park that Swann and his wife, Doris, made the connection that led to his biggest break in politics. Through one of their tenants, H.
Anthony King, the Swanns became friends with Edna Langford, a close friend of Rosalynn Carter.
Langford brought the future first lady to Orlando to enlist Swann’s support for her husband’s presidential campaign in 1974. Swann became finance chair for Jimmy Carter’s runs in 1976 and 1980.
One of the first calls U.S. Rep. Dick Gephardt made after winning the Iowa caucus in 1988 was to Swann, who became a key fundraiser for his short-lived presidential campaign.
In 1990, what the Orlando Sentinel described as a “shell-shocked” Swann had to give a tearful goodbye speech to his staff at American Pioneer Savings Bank. The federal government had rejected a plan to allow him to rebuild the troubled company in the wake of massive savings and loan failures across the country.
“In a lot of ways, the weight of the world has been lifted off my shoulders,” Swann said after the government seized the company and took it over, ending what was the key part of a $2 billion financial empire.
The demise of American Pioneer, considered one of the largest bank failures in Orlando, ultimately cost taxpayers more than $538 million, according to one estimate.
Swann had borrowed heavily to invest $5.5 million in American Pioneer, and bondholders later sued to recover $10 million they had invested. The failure also led to the end of the Orlando law firm his father founded, Swann & Haddock, and the liquidation of much of Swann’s personal assets, including his Winter Park home.
Swann eventually went back to practicing law and returned to his role in Democratic fundraising.
“He built himself back up,” said Batchelor, who had known Swann since 1974. “He still had that political currency. You’ve got to hand it to him. He made a significant, significant comeback.”
Swann also helped launch the career of his son-in-law Terry McAuliffe, a longtime friend who married his daughter Dorothy. McAuliffe became President Bill Clinton’s finance chair in 1992.
Swann would hold several fundraisers for both Bill and Hillary Clinton over the years. McAuliffe was elected governor of Virginia in 2013 and Dorothy became the state’s first lady.
He served as finance chair for both Bill McBride in his unsuccessful Democratic run for Florida governor in 2002 and McBride’s wife, Alex Sink, in her gubernatorial run in 2010.
Swann co-hosted a fundraiser last year for Nikki Fried, who went on to become Florida’s agriculture commissioner, along with John Morgan, a fellow Orlando attorney and Democratic fundraiser.
“Richard was the nicest guy I know,” Morgan said. “For him it was family first and politics second. He made you feel special. He helped build today’s Orlando.”
Batchelor said Swann’s success in raising millions for candidates over five decades taught others in the business that “relationships still matter.”
In 1998, Swann talked about his approach to politics, saying, “you meet a lot of people. You’re not using political contacts — they’re personal contacts that may have evolved from a common experience. It’s like someone in a foxhole with you. You get to know them.”
Services are scheduled for Wednesday at 11 a.m. at First United Methodist Church in Orlando, law partner Terry Hadley said, with viewing Tuesday evening at Casa Feliz in Winter Park.